I’m a mom of three little girls and 7 1/2 months pregnant. My kids all keep me on my toes and busy, especially my older two who are in school and have all kinds of activities going on. We really have tried in our family to make mealtime a special time where we sit down together as a family and eat. Generally do a pretty good job but oftentimes I struggle to figure out what to make that everyone will enjoy and won’t take too long to prepare. I really hate being on my feet in the kitchen for too long late in the afternoon because it seems to be the time of day that I’m just worn out.
I know I’d be perfectly content pulling out a can of soup but when it comes to kids it seems there’s just no pleasing and a can of soup won’t satisfy my husband. A can of soup is just plain boring too, there’s really nothing fun or special about it so I was excited to get to try Bertolli’s Frozen Meal Soup. I hesitate at frozen products, even though they are usually quick, easy and convenient I often find them lacking in flavor and quality of ingredients. I chose the Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta and was pleasantly surprised by the real veggies. The soup was packed full of white meat chicken, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, tomatoes and pasta. I decided to have the kids help with the preparation of the dinner and setting the table so they would feel more involved. This was the perfect meal to do that with because it was quick and simple to prepare and didn’t involve too many directions.
My eight year old was put in charge of helping prepare the actual soup while the 6 year old and 3 year old got to choose where everyone was sitting at the table, a huge deal in our house, and the dishes we used. They love their colored bowls but sometimes fight over who gets what color so the fact that they go to pick was a big deal and they had to work together to decide who would get what. They thought name tags would be a great idea too so there was no confusion when we went to sit down, so I wrote them up for them and my 6 year old got to cut them out while the 3 year old chose where they would go. It was great to see them working as a team without fighting- this in and of itself made mealtime special for me!
I knew a bowl of soup wouldn’t cut it with my husband so I had my 8 year old help make a quick Cesar salad and added a loaf of French bread to our meal both really easy and simple items that helped make it just a little more substantial and special. For the soup all we had to do was pour the bag of ingredients into the pan, add a cup of water, wait for it to boil then let simmer for 5 minutes and serve – super easy, it really can’t get any better than that! The bag of soup said it included 2 servings however we were able to feed two both my husband and I and our three kids with a little leftover so it would have easily served 4 adults as long as you weren’t just eating soup. The flavor was great! My kids thought it was kind of a fancy chicken noodle soup, but to me it was so much more. I loved the heartiness of the chicken and vegetables and while the broth was thin it was still filling. This probably isn’t something I’d purchase for an everyday meal because my local grocery store wanted $7 .99 for a bag and honestly the taste was similar to Progresso soup that’s quite a bit cheaper. However, this frozen soup really makes a great once in a while special treat!
Bertolli Frozen Meal Soups can be found in the frozen food section at your local grocery store in four different varieties, Chicken Minestrone, Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta, Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken, and Tuscan-Style Beef with Vegetables. I can’t wait to try some of the others!
My Top 3 Tips to make mealtime special:
- If you have kids let them help you prepare the food
- Nametags for each person at the table- let the kids choose the seating arrangement- mixing it up is always fun.
- Add side dishes that are simple and easy but spice it up- like a Cesar salad (we normally have a regular house) or bread – change up your normal routine.
Oh and don’t forget the dessert!! We ended up with a yummy pan of fudgy brownies with vanilla ice cream.
More about the Bertolli Meal Soups:
- Bertolli® Frozen Meal Soups are hearty and fresh-tasting with vegetables, meats, pasta and herbs individually flash frozen at the peak of freshness.Bertolli® Frozen Meal Soups are available in the frozen aisle, and can be prepared on your stovetop in minutes.
- With robust flavors and rich textures, new Bertolli® Frozen Meal Soups are available in four varieties: Chicken Minestrone, Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta, Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken, and Tuscan-Style Beef with Vegetables.
For more information on Bertolli products you can check them out on Facebook, Twitter and their Website.
Disclosure: I was compensated by Bertolli to participate in the Weeknight Meal Special Challenge.
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